Reuters
Tennis – Australian Open – Melbourne Park, Melbourne, Australia, February 9, 2021 Italy’s Matteo Berrettini celebrates winning his first round match against South Africa’s Kevin Anderson REUTERS/Jaimi Joy
Reuters
Tennis – Australian Open – Melbourne Park, Melbourne, Australia, February 9, 2021 Italy’s Matteo Berrettini celebrates winning his first round match against South Africa’s Kevin Anderson REUTERS/Jaimi Joy
The Australian Open 2021 has begun and Matteo Berrettini got off to a great start at the Grand Slam. The World No.10 player defeated Kevin Anderson in straight sets in the first round of the tournament.
Although the first set went into a close tie-breaker, Berrettini didn’t face any difficulty in the remaining two sets. The final scoreline of the match was 7-6, 7-5, 6-3.
Watch What’s Trending Now!
An interesting incident took place in the match at the end of the second set. Berrettini hit the net accidentally but somehow the ball landed on his opponent’s court. Although the Italian player won the point, he apologized to his opponent.
This was shocking to even Kevin Anderson. Berrettini later revealed why did he apologize in the post-match interview.
“I mean, I don’t know, you should ask my mom. She taught me to apologize when you hit the net,” said Berrettini in the interview.
Reuters
Tennis – Australian Open – Melbourne Park, Melbourne, Australia, February 9, 2021, Italy’s Matteo Berrettini celebrates during his first-round match against South Africa’s Kevin Anderson REUTERS/Jaimi Joy
Berrettini admitted that it was actually his mother who taught him to apologize for the action. It was surely a light moment and fans enjoyed that a lot.
“But, I mean, I think he was ready to play a volley, and then the ball obviously went up. So, I didn’t mean to do that,” accepted the World No.10 player.
“I apologized but then I did the fist pump”- Matteo Berrettini
Even though Berrettini apologized, he also expressed his joy after winning the point by doing a fist pump. He even enacted what he actually did at that moment.
Getty
Matteo Berrettini of Italy celebrates a point during his Men’s Singles quarterfinal match against Gael Monfils of France on day ten of the 2019 US Open at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center on September 04, 2019, in the Queens borough of New York City. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
“Nothing, I apologized but then I did the fist pump. I was doing both, like this,” concluded the Italian player.
It was certainly a moment of mixed feelings for Berrettini. On one hand, he was feeling that his opponent was unlucky, but on the other, he was happy that he won the point after all.
Matteo Berrettini will now advance to the second round of the Australian Open 2021. His opponent is not decided but he will surely like to carry forward this great form even in the next match.
Will Berrettini be able to win his maiden Grand Slam title in Melbourne this year?
